I hate to admit it, but the psychologists have it nailed. The emotional roller coaster I went through upon learning of my diagnosis last year is exactly what I have read that people tend to go through. I was first relieved to finally figure out what exactly this struggle is that I've lived with my whole life. That lasted maybe just four days. After that I went into a sort of depressed mood (not quite depression but a consistent mood killer).

I have always put myself down in the past and labeled myself as stupid or average at best. I would even poke fun at myself around others of my being unintelligent. The reason I feel into this depression is because sure, now I have a condition to explain everything, but at the same time, sure, I have a condition. There is indeed something screwed up about me. At least that is the thought I was thinking at the time. But, after what seemed to be like a long six months I started to feel in control again. I was getting close to the level of medications I am at now and really starting to get some good results with it. I have been reading almost nonstop about ADHD and learning as much as I could. I was starting to pin point things I was doing in relation to the ADHD.

Now, I am at the point where I believe ADHD really isn't all that bad. I wouldn't even label it a "condition" any more but more of just a convenience I have to learn how to manage. Sure I have to take extra measures to staying organized and on top of things than the average person, but really, in comparison to other mental illnesses such as Schizophrenia, ADHD really isn't all that bad. You are still very much aware of yourself and surroundings, you have all your mental faculties in check, and you tend to be this eccentric and lively person many people find to like.

I am not about to glorify ADHD but I feel I have finally reached a point where I can move on to other things in life rather than being held hostage to the "disorder".

I realize this was really a long breath just to introduce the question I'm posting here, but what about any of you? Did you find yourself going through similar emotions upon your diagnosis? What are your views about living with ADHD?

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I hate to admit it, but the psychologists have it nailed. The emotional roller coaster I went through upon learning of my diagnosis last year is exactly what I have read that people tend to go through. I was first relieved to finally figure out what exactly this struggle is that I've lived with my whole life. That lasted maybe just four days. After that I went into a sort of depressed mood (not quite depression but a consistent mood killer).

I have always put myself down in the past and labeled myself as stupid or average at best. I would even poke fun at myself around others of my being unintelligent. The reason I feel into this depression is because sure, now I have a condition to explain everything, but at the same time, sure, I have a condition. There is indeed something screwed up about me. At least that is the thought I was thinking at the time. But, after what seemed to be like a long six months I started to feel in control again. I was getting close to the level of medications I am at now and really starting to get some good results with it. I have been reading almost nonstop about ADHD and learning as much as I could. I was starting to pin point things I was doing in relation to the ADHD.

Now, I am at the point where I believe ADHD really isn't all that bad. I wouldn't even label it a "condition" any more but more of just a convenience I have to learn how to manage. Sure I have to take extra measures to staying organized and on top of things than the average person, but really, in comparison to other mental illnesses such as Schizophrenia, ADHD really isn't all that bad. You are still very much aware of yourself and surroundings, you have all your mental faculties in check, and you tend to be this eccentric and lively person many people find to like.

I am not about to glorify ADHD but I feel I have finally reached a point where I can move on to other things in life rather than being held hostage to the "disorder".

I realize this was really a long breath just to introduce the question I'm posting here, but what about any of you? Did you find yourself going through similar emotions upon your diagnosis? What are your views about living with ADHD?

I agree with a lot you've said. I don't spend a lot of time being angry and depressed because I have ADD and finding out I had it was more of a relief and enlightenment than anything else.

It might be that I don't have it as bad as some people do because I've seen comments by people on this forum that make me realize that to some people, it does seem to be cause for a great deal of grief and bitterness.

Maybe the different lies in how much you really care about the expectations of other people and the degree to which ADD makes it hard to live up to them. I don't care too much about what other people think. If they look down on me I feel sorry for them because of their lack of enlightenment. I won't allow the flawed expectations of ignorant people to place the weight of unnecessary guilt on me. That makes absolutely no sense. As I said earlier in another discussion, ADD symptoms are not moral failings. Moral failings are the only appropriate cause for guilt and self-flagellation.

An ADD diagnosis was not a death sentence. Rather, it was like being handed a more detailed map of how to navigate life, with a big "You Are Here" dot on it after having had nothing but a frustratingly general and uninformative one for a long time.

Last edited by spunkysmum; 01-27-12 at 01:24 AM..

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I think it'd be nice to not have to deal with the inattentiveness and lack of motivation, but it's all I've ever known so I guess I'm used to it lol. It's so difficult and stressful being a college student with ADHD. I feel like I have to try so hard to just do okay. I do feel like I think outside the box and i tend to be a maverick, common traits for people with ahdh but i can't say it's only because of that. It was a weight off my shoulders knowing I had a real disorder and not just terminally screwed up. I always felt like I was on a different level than my peers and now I know why, which is a relief.

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I think it'd be nice to not have to deal with the inattentiveness and lack of motivation, but it's all I've ever known so I guess I'm used to it lol. It's so difficult and stressful being a college student with ADHD. I feel like I have to try so hard to just do okay. I do feel like I think outside the box and i tend to be a maverick, common traits for people with ahdh but i can't say it's only because of that. It was a weight off my shoulders knowing I had a real disorder and not just terminally screwed up. I always felt like I was on a different level than my peers and now I know why, which is a relief.

My clumsy attempts at being a student happened years before I ever had my diagnosis. I am surprised I didn't find out about ADD sooner, that I didn't go searching for answers to why there was such a disconnect between my intelligence level and my ability to perform in school. Maybe because the internet wasn't as common then? But then, maybe not, because I actually found out about ADD by accident in a book I pulled off the shelf at the library.

I've always been a maverick myself. A real one, not a wanna-be rebel. LOL

I hate to admit it, but the psychologists have it nailed. The emotional roller coaster I went through upon learning of my diagnosis last year is exactly what I have read that people tend to go through. I was first relieved to finally figure out what exactly this struggle is that I've lived with my whole life. That lasted maybe just four days. After that I went into a sort of depressed mood (not quite depression but a consistent mood killer).

I have always put myself down in the past and labeled myself as stupid or average at best. I would even poke fun at myself around others of my being unintelligent. The reason I feel into this depression is because sure, now I have a condition to explain everything, but at the same time, sure, I have a condition. There is indeed something screwed up about me. At least that is the thought I was thinking at the time. But, after what seemed to be like a long six months I started to feel in control again. I was getting close to the level of medications I am at now and really starting to get some good results with it. I have been reading almost nonstop about ADHD and learning as much as I could. I was starting to pin point things I was doing in relation to the ADHD.

Now, I am at the point where I believe ADHD really isn't all that bad. I wouldn't even label it a "condition" any more but more of just a convenience I have to learn how to manage. Sure I have to take extra measures to staying organized and on top of things than the average person, but really, in comparison to other mental illnesses such as Schizophrenia, ADHD really isn't all that bad. You are still very much aware of yourself and surroundings, you have all your mental faculties in check, and you tend to be this eccentric and lively person many people find to like.

I am not about to glorify ADHD but I feel I have finally reached a point where I can move on to other things in life rather than being held hostage to the "disorder".

I realize this was really a long breath just to introduce the question I'm posting here, but what about any of you? Did you find yourself going through similar emotions upon your diagnosis? What are your views about living with ADHD?

Guess what?

Everything that you have written in this post strongly suggests that you don't have ADHD.

That's because bone fide ADHD is not a "toy" disorder; it is not a benign condition nor an "inconvenience". Rather, it is a legitimate and serious neurological syndrome that is associated with material impairment. Typically adults with undiagnosed ADHD encounter very substantial hardships throughout their lives as a result of their condition.

Everything that you have written in this post strongly suggests that you don't have ADHD.

That's because bone fide ADHD is not a "toy" disorder; it is not a benign condition nor an "inconvenience". Rather, it is a legitimate and serious neurological syndrome that is associated with material impairment. Typically adults with undiagnosed ADHD encounter very substantial hardships throughout their lives as a result of their condition.

There isn't one thing in that post that suggests the person doesn't have ADHD. Are you saying that if a person doesn't spend all their time sawing on the world's tiniest violin moaning "Nobody knows the troubles I've seen," then they can't have ADHD?

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Everything that you have written in this post strongly suggests that you don't have ADHD.

That's because bone fide ADHD is not a "toy" disorder; it is not a benign condition nor an "inconvenience". Rather, it is a legitimate and serious neurological syndrome that is associated with material impairment. Typically adults with undiagnosed ADHD encounter very substantial hardships throughout their lives as a result of their condition.

You are not really qualified to make that assertion.

Look at the big picture here. This is a post by a recently diagnosed person that is sharing their recent feelings and coming to terms with their ADHD. We all have different journeys. Just because someone else's journey doesn't seem "severe" enough doesn't mean that they don't suffer, it means that they are interpreting their experience in a way that makes sense to them.

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I think that there are several genes involved in ADHD so some people will be affected more than others – a spectrum disorder. Also, some people will have a supportive family and friends, enough money for good healthcare and coaching, a gift (like in music, art, or just have lots of smarts) unrelated to having ADHD, and maybe just a more laid back personality and no co-morbid disorders. Others will have the worst of the genes, a dysfunctional family, lack resources like money, have serious co-morbid disorders and be naturally more high strung.

I know some people in college with ADHD who seem to be getting along OK. They are passing their classes, making friends and doing better than some people who don’t have anything like ADHD but who are making plenty of stupid choices. I’m newly diagnosed and struggling but hopeful.

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Look at the big picture here. This is a post by a recently diagnosed person that is sharing their recent feelings and coming to terms with their ADHD. We all have different journeys. Just because someone else's journey doesn't seem "severe" enough doesn't mean that they don't suffer, it means that they are interpreting their experience in a way that makes sense to them.

There isn't one thing in that post that suggests the person doesn't have ADHD. Are you saying that if a person doesn't spend all their time sawing on the world's tiniest violin moaning "Nobody knows the troubles I've seen," then they can't have ADHD?

I am saying that if you take the time to apprise yourself - which you obviously have not -of the most recent research conducted into the disabling/impairing potentials of undiagnosed/untreated adult ADHD ; the kind of work, for example, done by people like Russell Barley/Gordon Murphy - the news from them is that most adults living with undetected, untreated ADHD are beset by serious impairments that inflict serious harms across multiple major areas of their lives over many years: relationships, marriage, employment, education, social, driving, adaptive functioning, and so on.

They may not "saw on tiny violins" but it seems from all the recent scientific evidence collected, that most of them do endure pervasive, chronic and substantial distress and suffering throughout their lives; impairments and distress more serious, Russell Barkley concludes, than those which accompany any of the other psychological disorders that present at outpatient psychiatric clinics.

Secondly, if you are not already aware of the fact, I will also tell you that because (amongst other reasons) the core symptoms of ADHD: inattention, impulsivity, hyperactivity, are exerienced to some extent by all of humanity, there are a hell of a lot of people who THINK that they have ADHD, who in fact do not. Equally, there are a hell of a lot - thousands- of people routinely misdiagnosed by underqualified GPs as having bone fide ADHD (for much the same reasons) who do not. If you don't believe me , check out the research for yourself; it's easy enough to access.

This veritable army of individuals who think that they have ADHD, or , who have been misdiagnosed with ADHD, do, in many different ways, ultimately create - by their mere existence - multiple and substantial problems for those other individuals who are actually afflicted with genuine ADHD.

Lastly, with regard to the post I responded to, I have to tell you that anyone who makes claims like:

" I believe ADHD really isn't all that bad... I wouldn't even label it a condition... just an inconvenienceI have to learn how to manage, etc."

I would wager, "London to a brick" does not have adult ADHD- nothing even close to it. Why? Because what they are saying is 100% pure nonsense.

I suppose I can agree to the extent that well-treated ADHD isn't as debilitating as, say, untreated bipolar disorder... And, like you, I don't believe that any diagnosis should become an identity nor should it be an excuse for every failing in life or a reason to stop trying.

However, being around these forums for awhile has given me insight into others whose ADHD has not necessarily been as well-managed as mine or has remained untreated for longer periods and subjected them to a great deal of terrible consequences, many of which I doubt I'll ever have to face. So, I might say that my ADHD isn't a dire situation, but I can't make the case that my experience is the same as that of anyone else.

__________________"Everyone wants to be a perpetual motion machine / we all try harder as the days run out"

Lastly, with regard to the post I responded to, I have to tell you that anyone who makes claims like:

" I believe ADHD really isn't all that bad... I wouldn't even label it a condition... just an inconvenience I have to learn how to manage, etc."

I would wager, "London to a brick" does not have adult ADHD- nothing even close to it. Why? Because what they are saying is 100% pure nonsense.

I wouldn't wager anything from a single post on a forum. People who are diagnosed with ADHD often come here and say trivializing things about it. I don't think this means they don't have it, although I hesitate to guess why they do trivialize it.

I am not sure that the OP is trivializing ADHD so much as trying to understand it. My own understanding over time has shifted considerably, and having a disorder does not automatically make one an expert on it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by trishcan

I suppose I can agree to the extent that well-treated ADHD isn't as debilitating as, say, untreated bipolar disorder... And, like you, I don't believe that any diagnosis should become an identity nor should it be an excuse for every failing in life or a reason to stop trying.

What does "an excuse for failing in life" mean? How does it differ from having an explanation?

I interact with disability activists rather frequently (and have for years before I knew for sure that I was disabled) and I find a lot of people incorporate their diagnoses into their identities. I am not sure why there's something wrong with this? People incorporate all kinds of things into their identities - their hobbies, where they live, their favorite sports teams, their careers. What is exceptional about one's mental health that makes it less appropriate for such a thing?